


An Impossible Tale

by TMar



Category: Quantum Leap, Star Trek: The Next Generation
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-22
Updated: 2018-12-22
Packaged: 2019-09-24 22:34:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,442
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17109413
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TMar/pseuds/TMar
Summary: Sam leaps into Ensign Sonya Gomez on the USS Enterprise NCC 1701-D.





	An Impossible Tale

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this for a friend in July 1992.

An Impossible Tale

This leap was a lot more disorienting than Sam's usual leaps: for one thing, it didn't seem instantaneous, and for another, he got a very weird feeling the minute he leaped in. Sam shook his head, trying to clear it, and then stared quite unashamedly at the man in front of him.

The man was wearing what looked like an alice band over his eyes, and he was pushing a lot of little buttons on what seemed to be a huge computer console. Sam looked down, to see that he was holding a kind of flat, computer-like board, which was also lit up with coloured lights. Apparently he had been making adjustments on it or something...

The man with the thing on his eyes spoke. "Sonya? Are you okay?"

"Huh?" said Sam.

"Are you okay? You've been staring into space for about five minutes?"

"Ah... actually... I don't..." Sam swallowed, trying to keep his voice even. Where on Earth was he? "Ah... I don't... don't feel well."

"Look, I know you want to finish these antimatter tests before we get to Starbase 114, but you're pushing yourself too hard."

"Uh... yeah, you may be right." Sam agreed, not knowing what else to say to explain his freaked-out look.

The man put his arm around Sam's waist and steered him away. "Tell ya what. You go to your quarters and have a nice long shower, then have a rest. Go to the Holodeck. Have a drink in Ten Forward."

"Oh... okay." The man steered him around the corner, smiled, and went back in, to... wherever that was.

Sam desperately looked around for Al, who didn't appear to be forthcoming. He just stood there, wondering what to do next. He looked around - he was in a corridor, a very futuristic-looking one... people in military-style uniforms like the one he was wearing were milling around. Deciding to look as if he knew where he was going, Sam followed a male crewmember along the corridor, and into a lift. "Deck Ten," said the crewman. "Sonya?"

"Huh?"

"Where are you headed?"

"Huh? Oh... ah... my quarters."

The man nodded, gave the deck number. Then he turned. "Geordi pushing you too hard?"

"No... no! I... I push myself too hard, sometimes."

"I can understand that. Listen. Why don't you come and have a drink with me and Deanna in Ten Forward? Relax a bit."

"That's what Geordi said," said Sam, hoping that Geordi was the guy with the thing over his eyes.

"Great." The man smiled - a devastating smile, to be sure, and then the doors opened on Deck Ten. Both got out, and Sam, still feeling lost, followed the man into Ten Forward.

"Look who I brought with me," said Riker.

Sam noticed a very beautiful woman with long black hair smiling up at him. "Hullo, Sonya. Having a rest I see. It'll do you good."

As she said that, Sam was reminded of his school's Guidance Counselor - kind, understanding, sympathetic. He sat down. "What'll you have?" asked Riker.

"Coffee," said Sam.

Riker locked at him funny, but gat ip and went ever to the bar. Deanna turned to Sam, now frowning. "Sonya, are... do you feel... all right?"

"Not really. I feel kind of lightheaded."

"I sense confusion and... panic. Want to talk about it?"

"No!"

Just then, Al appeared. "Wow! What a nifty place. Ooh, looka these women, Sam! Boy, could I have a good time here!"

Sam turned to admonish Al, but Deanna was staring in complete surprise. "Who are you?"

"You can see me?"

Riker returned with the coffee.

"Of course I can see you," answered Deanna, and Al looked skyward (well, up at the ceiling, anyway) and said, "Thank you!" At last, a gorgeous woman could actually see him. About time too!

"See who?" Riker was asking as he looked around.

"Him."

"Where?"

"There." She pointed. "There's a man in a purple jacket and a maroon hat standing right next to you."

"I don't see anyone," said Riker.

"Will!" Troi sighed. "I think we've established that." She turned back to Al. "Are you going to tell me who you are?"

Al looked at Sam, who shrugged. "Sonya?" asked Deanna.

"Ah... is there somewhere we can go and talk?"

Once in Deanna's office, Sam burst out with, "Where am I?"

"What do you mean?"

Sam began to explain very patiently. "I know that to you, I look like... Sonya. But I'm not. My name is Sam Beckett. I... leaped in here."

"Leaped in?"

"I designed a time travel experiment called Project Quantum Leap. I leap in to different people and put things right that once went wrong."

Troi looked sceptical. "You're a time traveller?"

"Well, sort of. I'm only supposed to be able to travel within my own lifetime... but by the looks of things this is way, way past my life. What year is it?"

Deanna shook her head. "I don't think it's wise to tell you," she said.

Al smacked the hand link, and came in with, "Ziggy guesses late 23rd century."

"Where are we, Al?"

"Ziggy says there's an 87.2% probability that you're on a spaceship."

"Oh come on, Al. A spaceship?"

Deanna smiled suddenly, for she could feel that Sam was not intent on deception: in fact, he was a very open, honest person. And she sighed, still smiling. "You're aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise."

Sam was still trying to assmiliate the information. "I'm on a spaceship?"

"We're a Starfleet vessel. Starfleet is the military-diplomatic arm of the United Federation of Planets."

"Oh, boy," said Sam and Al together.

In Sonya's quarters, Sam yelled at Al. "Al, what happened? I'm not supposed to be able to travel further than my own lifetime! And here I am, four hundred years later!!"

Al smiled, clearly relishing something. "Yeah. Wait till I tell Ziggy his estimate was about 100 years out."

"Never mind Ziggy!" shouted Sam. "He can't help us here!" Then he calmed down and said, "Al. We have no information on this time period. I haven't a clue what I'm supposed to do here."

"Which isn't all," Al pointed out. "Ziggy doesn't know how you got here, either."

"I figured that."

"Sam, what if this captain that the counselor went to talk to refuses to let you stay on the ship?"

"I don't know," sighed Sam.

"Well, lemme see if Gushie can centre me on her. Gushie, centre me on... Sam, what was her name? Oh, yeah. Deanna." Al disappeared.

Sam went to lie down, and think about what had happened. He couldn't believe that he was here - something was wrong somewhere. Perhaps he was in some sort of... parallel universe? He didn't know, he just sighed heavily.

"Sam!"

Sam jumped up. "I HATE it when you do that!"

"Never mind that now. There're aliens on this ship!"

"Aliens?"

"Yeah, yeah, you know, aliens 'take me to your leader'."

"It's not surprising," concluded Sam. He didn't think he could be surprised by much after this. And then the door chimed.

He went to stand in front of it, wondering how to open the thing. Finally he just said, "Come in."

And a man with a huge row of bumps on his head walked in. Sam backed up, very VERY quickly. "You will come with me," said the man.

"Ah... okay. Where are we going?"

"To see the captain."

Sam followed the man out and down the corridor, keeping his distance all the same. "Excuse me," he finally managed to say, "but what are you?"

"I am Lieutenant Worf. I am a Klingon."

"A Klingon?"

"Yes. We are warriors."

And that was all Sam could get out of him, but he was rather stunned to see other alien races milling around, too. He hadn't noticed them down on the... whatever deck he'd been on. "What was that?"

"A Vulcan." 

"And that?" All his third question got him was a very stern stare from Worf, which made him think that he'd better just keep quiet now.

They walked into the captain's Ready Room, where Jean-Luc Picard smiled at "Sonya", then remembered...

"You are this scientist who has, er, 'leaped' into Sonya Gomez?"

"Yes." Sam stretched out his hand. "I'm Sam Beckett."

"As I understand it, Mister, er, Beckett."

"Doctor Beckett, actually," Sam said hopefully.

Picard looked irritated at having been interrupted, but carried on. "Doctor Beckett. Counselor Troi says that you leaped in here to help someone." 

"Yes. Usually, Ziggy - he's a parallel hybrid computer - searches for the history and tells me what I'm there to change. But because I'm not in the same... place... I don't know what it is I'm supposed to do." 

"But you won't leave until you've done it?" j \

"No." Sam looked scared. He didn't have the first clue of what he was supposed to do, and he didn't know anything about this ship or any of its operations. But Picard had other things on his mind.

"I'm sorry, Doctor, but I can't let you do anything that might affect our history." The crew of the Enterprise knew the consequences of tampering with history, and Picard didn't want to take any risks. 

"Then I won't leap, Sonya will stay in the Waiting Room, and we won't have solved anything." 

Picard looked thoughtful. "Then that's what we do."

Sam suddenly got inspiration. "What if by NOT letting me act as Sonya, you change history?"

Picard hadn't thought of that, but decided that it was a risk they had to take.

"Al, I'm going crazy here! They won't let me out, all I do is sit here and read and stare at the walls!"

"Why don't you go to the Holodeck?"

Sam glanced up to find Deanna Troi standing in the doorway. "I can do that?"

Deanna shrugged. "I'll go with you."

On Holodeck Two, Deanna programmed in some scenes from Betazed, which Sam found very impressive. Rigel VII was next, then Vulcan, which Sam found very harsh and beautiful. Finally the two of them sat next to a waterfall, and the counselor said, "Feeling better?"

Sam smiled. "Yes."

"Want to talk more about these leaps of yours?"

He shrugged. "I could tell you about all the places I've been to, things I've done, but..."

"Then why don't you?"

Sam smiled sadly. "I wish I could remember more about my life... before." He launched into the standard explanation. "The first time you leap, your brain gets swiss-cheesed." Sam looked up, waiting for Deana to query it, but she didn't, only nodded sympathetically. "So, I've remembered about my family, my sister and brother... but there's something... someone I can't remember."

"Why do you think that is?"

"I think He wants it that way."

"He?"

"Whoever is leaping me around."

"You really think some higher force is doing this?"

"It's the only possible answer. When I fix something that went wrong before, I always leap. And it's always into a situation that needs fixing."

Deanna sensed Sam's mood getting darker, so she attempted a lighter tone. "So, tell me all the things you've done."

"I've played a lot of sports, flown a plane, leaped into cops, mothers, children..." He smiled at the memory.

"You must be very accomplished," said Deanna, purposely sounding impressed, but Sam only looked down shyly. "What?" she inquired. "You are a doctor, aren't you?"

Sam nodded. "I'm a medical doctor, a quantum physicist... Al says I have seven degrees, but I don't know what the other five are in."

Deanna now realised exactly why this man had been chosen for this job of putting things right: he had all the necessary skills, knew he was smart, and yet remained just his normal self. If there were more people like this Doctor Sam Beckett around, the galaxy might be vastly improved.

"Can you tell me, Counselor, what mission this space ship is on?"

"We're a Galaxy-Class Starship, we're on an exploration mission mainly."

"And what's going on today?"

Deciding that it wouldn't matter if she told him a little, seeing he was clearly not from the same timeline as she was, Deanna relented. "The captain just beamed down to hold some negotiations with the people from Brohlrt IV."

"Well, can we swim in there?" asked Sam, tiring of all the talk and pointing at the pool under the falls.

Deanna smiled. "All right."

***

The bridge crew was on the bridge worrying about the captain when the call came in from the Brohlians. Riker took it, and with every word they uttered, his face grew darker and darker, until, Wesley was sure, even Worf would stay away from him.

"Assemblyone, you can be sure that the Federation will not cooperate."

"Then your captain will die."

"By threatening the life of Captain Picard, you may be sure that the Federation will not look kindly on you in the future."

"We care only about the present."

"And we will not co-operate." Riker gestured to Worf to cut the transmission. "Conference," he said.

Deanna arrived late for the conference, still with wet hair, hugging a robe around herself. But there was no time to comment on that, as Riker briefed everyone on the situation.

Finally, Geordi spoke up. "What do they want, Commander? They made a lot of noise about us doing what they say, but we don't even know what that is!"

"Whatever it is, it must be vital to them, otherwise they would never have threatened the captain's life."

"Ideas?" asked Riker of everyone in general.

"I would theorise that they want weapons or supplies, or our help in some venture," said Data.

"I agree, but until we know what they want, the captain's life is at stake."

"Commander, what if this is a test?"

Riker looked askance at Troi, as if to say, 'You're kidding'. But what he said was, "A test?"

"I feel something now... I don't think they intend the captain harm."

"All right, we wait and see."

***

Beverly Crusher had been doing a delicate, though routine, operation in Sickbay and had not made it up to the observation lounge. Now, she sat in the Holodeck, crying.. She didn't know why it had to happen now; it wasn't the first time Picard had been captured and held hostage, it wasn't even the first time she'd had to brace for his death.

She didn't hear Deanna come in softly behind her. "You're very distressed," said Deanna. "Want to tell me?"

"I don't know!" said the doctor, throwing up her hands. "I'm usually a rock during this kind of thing! And now, now I fall apart! Please tell me what's wrong with me!" She didn't really expect an answer.

"What's wrong with you?" Deanna pulled a face. "It's the one time too many."

"What?"

"We can all only take so much, then we can't take any more. It's then that this kind of thing happens. You've been thinking about all the other times the captain has been captured, haven't you?"

"Yes. I mean, once, I was with him, so it wasn't so bad. Finn almost killed him right in front of me, but I stayed calm. When he turned towards me on the Borg ship, I remained calm. When he became Locutus, I mourned, but I never fell apart like this!"

"Perhaps it's overdue, then," the counselor replied, getting up. "Think about it."

Deanna went out.

Beverly sat there, still crying, for another ten minutes, when Sam walked in.

She'd heard about him, but it was still hard to believe. "Hi, Sonya. Er, Doctor Beckett."

Sam smiled and sat next to her. "Hi."

Beverly realised he was waiting for her to introduce herself. "Oh. I'm Dr. Crusher."

"You're the one whose son's the helm officer?"

Beverly looked at him in a new way. "How did you know about that?"

Sam couldn't very well say that his holographic partner had seen the doctor and gone slightly ga-ga, and visited her quarters...etc! "Ah, I heard it... around."

Beverly wiped away the tears, smiled wanly. "They let you walk around loose?"

Sam laughed then. "Oh, no! But Counselor Troi got me permission to visit this Holodeck... as long as I was guarded."

"Oh." Beverly resumed thinking about Jean-Luc.

"Now," said Sam, "what's wrong with you?" 

"Jean-Luc... the captain... has been abducted by the Brohlians. They're threatening to kill him!"

"And that upsets you." It was not a question; and in that moment Sam wondered if perhaps he didn't have a degree in psychology - he always seemed to 'know' things like that about people. Then again, he decided, maybe he was just very intuitive.

Beverly sounded a bit too formal when she said, "Yes, he's my friend."

But Sam dug deeper. "It's more than that, isn't it? Isn't it?"

Beverly wanted to shout and ask him who gave him the right to ask her, but. instead she just sighed and said, "I don't know. I... sometimes I think it's more than that, sometimes... sometimes I feel comfortable being his friend."

"You love him." Another statement.

"Yeah, I guess I do."

"Doctor, take my advice. If he survives, tell him. Life without love is meaningless."

Beverly pushed back her hair, trying to remember why she WASN'T supposed to tell Jean-Luc that she loved him... but under the influence of this man she couldn't remember. 

Sam smiled at her, then held out his hand and helped her up. "If you love him, tell him." And they both exited the holodeck.

Sam went back to Sonya's quarters. "Why haven't I leaped yet, Al? If my job isn't getting done here, I should be outta here!"

"I dunno, Sam," said Al, consulting his handlink to Ziggy. "Ziggy says that if you're still here, you probably ARE accomplishing what you're here to do."

But I don't know what it is!"

"Maybe it doesn't matter," said Al, shrugging.

***

"Picard to Enterprise."

"Captain?"

"No need to sound so surprised, Number One. I'm fine." Picard was amused.

"Captain, are you really all right?"

"Yes. Our friends the Brohlians wanted to be sure if we merited their friendship."

"So they kidnapped you?"

"Oh, with my approval, Commander. They needed to be sure that our armed forces, as they call Starfleet, couldn't be broken easily."

"So if I'd given in..."

"They would have interpreted it as a sign of weakness."

Riker sighed - a long, deep sigh. "Captain, are you beaming up now?"

"Affirmative."

In the transporter room, Picard asked Riker about the Sonya/Sam situation. Riker shook his head. "No change, Sir. He's still here, and Deanna says that holographic partner of his keeps popping in as well."

"Why can she see him?" asked Picard, out of pure curiosity.

"Her brainwaves aren't the same as ours. We think that other aliens - Vulcans, maybe, Klingons... might be able to see him too, they just haven't had the opportunity."

"Keep it that way," ordered Picard.

"Yes, Sir."

Picard strolled in the direction of his quarters. When the door swooshed open, there stood his chief medical officer. "Beverly?" he asked, quite taken aback.

The doctor stepped forward and hugged him. "Jean-Luc, I'm so glad you're all right!" And she kissed him! Picard got quite a shock, to say the least. "Beverly, what...?"

"I love you, Jean-Luc. I've been trying to say it for so long, it's a relief to get it out in the open. If it makes you uncomfortable, pretend I never said it." She looked sad at that prospect.

But Jean-Luc didn't do that. Instead, he put his arms around her. "Beverly... this is quite a surprise, but it's not altogether an unpleasant one." And he smiled. Wickedly.

***

Much, much later, Beverly began laughing. "What is it?" asked Picard, who had almost, almost gone to sleep. The doctor looked back at him, shaking her head. "He's a quantum physicist."

Picard was NOT very wide awake. "Who?"

"Doctor Sam Beckett." She could feel Picard frowning at her naked back. He didn't get the joke.

"So, he's a quantum physicist...?"

"His project is called Project Quantum Leap."

"Mmmmm," said Picard.

"And he kept saying he doesn't know how he got here."

No answer, so Beverly whispered to herself. "Maybe we both ran into Fate's version of a Quantum Filament." And she smiled, and fell asleep too.

***

Sam sat on the cliff next to the waterfall. Al stood in mid-air opposite him. "I dunno, Sam. Ziggy still says..."

But Sam suddenly sat up straight. And smiled. "Al..."

"Huh?"

"I don't know what it was, but I did something. Whatever I was supposed to do, I did."

"Just like Ziggy said," Al commented with a satisfied grin.

And Sam leapt.

THE END


End file.
